Why does Aikido seem to rely so much on the attacker grabbing the defender?

Shooters and Jake Lo%26#039;s answers explain it all.





Aikido is an excellent style if used properly.





Best wishes :)***|||Like Kevin said, it%26#039;s really only in the beginning. Aikido is quite complex in it%26#039;s movements - and learning from a static position helps to demonstrate the basic principles in a format that new people are often more comfortable with. Once they get that down, it%26#039;s relatively easy to switch that into a strike with the statement %26quot;do it like you did the grab%26quot;.





For an art that requires you to focus on what you are doing to the attacker more than what you are doing yourself - and may require changes in direction, multiple hand changes, and precise movement of all of your limbs - breaking it down is sometimes necessary. Interestingly enough though, a static position is the most difficult to work with - but the easiest to control. In fact, I now change my answer from %26quot;it%26#039;s easier to learn the technique%26quot; to %26quot;it%26#039;s easier to learn control of the technique%26quot;.|||It doesn%26#039;t, actually - that%26#039;s just the way it%26#039;s taught for the first couple of years, until you understand the fundamentals. It%26#039;s entirely possible to be aggressive with it, to %26quot;open up%26quot; someone%26#039;s guard by punching their arms and/or fienting to get the to where you want them to be.





The reason the locks and grabs are emphasized so much is because it%26#039;s EASY to hurt someone using small-circle (ie, writs and finger) joint manipulation. Therefore, they teach grappling early and often, in highly-styalized %26quot;sparring%26quot; (ie, training and co-operative) modes. Once you%26#039;ve learned the fundamentals of how to not injure your training partner or yourself (aka %26quot;earning your black belt%26quot;), you can learn the other stuff.





That being said, that defensive tendency is still in there, even at the higher levels. It%26#039;s just not a necessity.|||Because Aikido%26#039;s specialty relies on defending against grabbing and charging attacks. A trained aikidoka will stay out of reach and force uke to commit to an attack or plunge in. He can draw the attack, by %26quot;offering%26quot; an opening and using evasive footwork or even striking first (atemi), and capitalizing on the attacker%26#039;s reaction and momentary breach of balance.





Secondly, Aikido is still a jiujitsu-derived style and so like jiujitsu, close contact with the attacker is required in order to pull the techniques off.|||Actually there are a couple of different types of Aikido or styles that use that term. The most popular one and the one that Ueshiba started, Aikikai is more defensive in nature and also stresses a lot of philosophy and proper decorum and cultural aspects. Minoru Aikido is much more aggressive and also stresses the use of strikes. It was taught and is today even to Japan%26#039;s police and was taught to their military in WW II. It evolved from one of Ueshiba%26#039;s students, Minoru Hirai who had studied jujitsu and was invited by Ueshiba to train with him at his dojo.|||AIKIDO is the supreme escape art .You will notice when the masters of the art demo with multiple opponents they don%26#039;t get grabbed they make them chase around in circles.An AIKIDO expert can%26#039;t trade strikes with a striker or get in the ring with a bjj or mma fighter as they would be throwing away the principles and fundamentals that makes their art work.Trained fighters don%26#039;t chase they are aware of how their momentum can be used against them.|||Because Aikido is a reactionary art that uses what the enemy gives you in order to better manipulate and subdue them with minimal damage done. It%26#039;s simply a way to stop them without severely injuring or killing them.





It%26#039;s actually a brilliant art, and while I prefer more %26#039;aggressive%26#039; techniques in conjunction with my soft and internal styles, I whole heartedly appreciate the skill and effectiveness of Aikido.|||Shooters gave an excellent answer here. Besides when you think about it if someone does not grab, punch, or kick, or attack with a knife or gun, you simply don%26#039;t need to defend yourself.|||I%26#039;m by no means an expert in Aikido, but what little I do know does not require the attacker grab the defender. It only requires the attacker to be within an arm%26#039;s reach and moving toward the defender.|||About 50% of my aikido training is against grabs, 40% against strikes/swings to the head and 10% fists to the stomach.





If you were to watch an aikido demonstration I think you would see a similar ratio.





You should give it a try. :)|||the purpose of akkido was to survive a fight against a person with a sword so getting inside the effective range of the weapon was necessary fight the person not the weapon and you can not box against a sword you get them off their feet then disable them or run away|||Aikido is a defensive art. It%26#039;s not supposed to be used to attack people but to defend yourself against people.|||aikido is a defensive martial art, using your opponents strength against him and so forth. most aikido guys also have knowledge in an offensive art|||Because it%26#039;s mostly a defensive discipline. You wait for someone to punch you and then you get to really **** them up. Not for me. I%26#039;m a Kenpo guy.|||its called %26quot;self defence%26quot;???????|||i agree its a defense art, i would love to get into it one day